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I'm really happy that the lawyer mentioned those figures. We (the public) depend on bits and pieces like this to find out how the world works. So much of our ev

I'm really happy that the lawyer mentioned those figures. We (the public) depend on bits and pieces like this to find out how the world works. So much of our everyday life is governed by the secret internal policies of giant corporations, and secret deals between them. I fully understand that private companies have a right to keep things secret. But I also believe that people should have a right to know about the things that affect them. And somehow I think it's important to know that the default search engine on my phone might not only be there because its the best one, but because they pay the most. I hope more lawyers start mentioning random tidbits like this...

bad_user 10y ago
Careful what you wish for. Not being able to keep trade secrets is why many toxic trade agreements and patents happened, which ultimately keep the big players big and the small players small. And does it really help you to know that there's a deal between Google and Apple? It was already public knowledge that Google payed a lot of money to Mozilla for making the default in Firefox. Did you think Apple did it for free or something? And how exactly does that influence your choices as a customer? Does that make their search engine worse somehow? I doubt that it can make a difference for a majority of people. For one because it's not newsworthy, I mean, a majority of people don't care about privacy either, let alone worrying about having their choices influenced. But also because Google's search engine is objectively the best search engine and disbelievers should simply try local searches in Europe for a taste of the huge margin of how Google's search beats its competition. And the same can be said of Google Maps actually. Maybe they've integrated it with Waze or something, but it's really smart about traffic and alternative routes lately, not to mention that it's the only one that can keep up with the one-way streets in my city. Apple might have rolled their own solution, but it really sucks by comparison. And the iPhone owners in my city install Google Maps anyway.
- greenokapi 10y ago
  The exact amount paid to Mozilla was known as well.
- jakobegger 10y ago
  I'm pretty sure that most "trade secrets" aren't actually about avoiding unfair competition, but more about preventing customers from finding out how the sausage is made. All the industry insiders probably know how much the licensing fees are; it's the public that they don't want to find out.

bad_user 10y ago

Careful what you wish for. Not being able to keep trade secrets is why many toxic trade agreements and patents happened, which ultimately keep the big players big and the small players small. And does it really help you to know that there's a deal between Google and Apple? It was already public knowledge that Google payed a lot of money to Mozilla for making the default in Firefox. Did you think Apple did it for free or something? And how exactly does that influence your choices as a customer? Does that make their search engine worse somehow? I doubt that it can make a difference for a majority of people. For one because it's not newsworthy, I mean, a majority of people don't care about privacy either, let alone worrying about having their choices influenced. But also because Google's search engine is objectively the best search engine and disbelievers should simply try local searches in Europe for a taste of the huge margin of how Google's search beats its competition. And the same can be said of Google Maps actually. Maybe they've integrated it with Waze or something, but it's really smart about traffic and alternative routes lately, not to mention that it's the only one that can keep up with the one-way streets in my city. Apple might have rolled their own solution, but it really sucks by comparison. And the iPhone owners in my city install Google Maps anyway.

greenokapi 10y ago
The exact amount paid to Mozilla was known as well.
jakobegger 10y ago
I'm pretty sure that most "trade secrets" aren't actually about avoiding unfair competition, but more about preventing customers from finding out how the sausage is made. All the industry insiders probably know how much the licensing fees are; it's the public that they don't want to find out.